


Single Riders Will Be Paired

by 221b_gone_feels



Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Amusement Parks, Crushes, Disney World & Disneyland, Ferris Wheels, First Kiss, Fluff, M/M, Strangers to Friends, Teen John Watson, Teen Sherlock, Teenlock
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-08
Updated: 2018-11-08
Packaged: 2019-08-20 20:58:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16563026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/221b_gone_feels/pseuds/221b_gone_feels
Summary: No single riders.Ferris wheels are gay. Johnlock is gay. Combine for extra gay.





	Single Riders Will Be Paired

'Happiest Place on Earth' is not what Sherlock was thinking during his family's trip to Disneyland. Most teens would be ecstatic to go somewhere new, especially somewhere out of the country, but Sherlock isn't like most teens. There were children running around, crying when they couldn't see Mickey for the fifth time that day, and couples were making out everywhere you looked. The rides weren't incredibly interesting either. Star Tours had too long of a line, Autopia's Burt was even more annoying than Mycroft, and if Mummy made Sherlock go on Small World one more time, he was going to stand up on Space Mountain.

So far, the only ride Sherlock preferred was the Pirates of the Caribbean. The line went by quick and the ride itself was long. He loved how the robots moved and how the scenes played out. Sherlock was never going to admit it, but Captain Jack Sparrow was welcome to kidnap him anytime. Again, not that he would ever admit it.

It was their last day to go to California Adventure. Mummy and Daddy wanted to go on Toy Story Mania, so everyone went on Toy Story Mania. Mummy vs Daddy, and Sherlock vs Mycroft. Mycroft refused to put on the ridiculous glasses on. Sherlock just put the glasses in his lap and leaned back. Though, the idea to relax was immediately ruined when the cart moved and spun on the track.

"Ugh, why did we even have to get on this ride? We could have waited outside," complained Sherlock as he ran his hand through his hair.

Mycroft just groaned, "Patience, brother mine, this silly little game will be over soon enough then you can go back to judging all the people on the pier."

The younger, and more annoyed, Holmes rolled his eyes. Buzz Light-year waved his arms frantically, saying something about shooting the targets the aliens were holding up. The ride when on for a few more minutes then, thankfully, ended. The family of four walked up the staircase, deposited their glasses in the marked bins, then walked through the store.

"Sherlock! This shirt would look adorable on you!" Mummy noted, tugging on a black shirt with three of the alien toys looking up at stars saying 'ohhhh!' Sherlock looked mortified at the garment.

"No thank you, Mummy, I'll stick with this," He spoke as he patted his chest, referring to his black Captain Jack Sparrow shirt with 'Rogue' printed across the bottom, carefully tucked into the top of his blue jeans, "Maybe Mycroft would like it,"

At the words, Mycroft glared at Sherlock as he walked out of the store, leaving his brother to deal with their mother. Sherlock put his hands behind his back and looked over the pier. It was a nice afternoon. The sun was out, light clouds, cool breeze. Most people were heading to the other side of the park to get food. Sherlock looked to his left and saw Mickey's Fun Wheel. It looked slightly fun. There were two different types of carts on it. The ones on the outside were stationary, but the ones on the inside moved and swayed. Sherlock watched one cart slide to the other side of the wheel and wrinkled his nose.

"Where to now?" His father asked as the three other Holmes's walked out of the store. In Mycroft's hand was a small gift bag, and judging by his distasteful face, it was the shirt. A smirk pulled at Sherlock's mouth.

"We should get lunch," the older brother recommended.

"You would suggest food," the younger mumbled.

Mummy skated over the comment, "I believe there were a few restaurants that way," she spoke as she pointed to the right. Sherlock looked back at the Ferris wheel. Mummy and Daddy hated heights, and Mycroft hated fun, so it would be a nice way to get away from them and have some more alone time.

He looked back at his parents, "I'm not hungry. Can I go on the Ferris wheel instead? I will meet up with you all after."

Mummy and Daddy exchanged looks. His father nodded, then they parted ways. Sherlock made his way to the wheel, listening to the other kids scream on the roller coaster above him. Now, did he want to go on the swinging or the stationary ones? He decided that if he went on the stationary, he could think better and not have to worry about being thrown around.

Sherlock walked up to the stationary line. As he got closer he saw a sign that said, 'Single Riders will be paired up.' He groaned slightly and looked behind him. No one else was in line at the moment, the little number of people there were in line for the swinging ones. Sherlock smirked as he waited for the cast member to signal the next go of the wheel. Teenagers poured out of the moving carts swaying and giggling, others, in the stationary carts, begged for another go as there was only one person in line. The worker nodded and moved the next, and only, open cart down to their level.

The cast member, who had to be the same age as Sherlock, roughly seventeen, motioned him to enter the fixed cart. As he was stepping on, he heard the worker say, "You too, sir," to someone behind him. Sherlock turned as saw who he was talking to as no one had been behind him a moment ago.

It was another person, about nineteen though he was slightly shorter than Sherlock, with dusky blonde hair. It was partly bleached from the California sun. His slightly tanned face turned red as he made eye contact with Sherlock then looked down. "Come on, I don't bite," Sherlock spoke. He turned back around and sat down on the right side of the cart. He heard a shuffle then felt the cart shift as the other teen climbed on. He sat across from Sherlock and looked out towards the water as the worker closed the door.

Sherlock looked the boy over. His spine was straight, his hands were resting on his knees, his chin up, feet forward. The sleeves of his Monsters University shirt was rolled up to his elbows. He was wearing black combat boots and blue jeans. Sherlock shifted slightly as the wheel started gently moving. "Where are you going?" he asked nonchalantly.

The teen looked up at the brunet, "Pardon?"

British, Sherlock thought. He crossed his arms, "Where are you going? You're sitting as a soldier would, you're wearing combat boots to an amusement park, which no one would do unless they were already used to them or practicing to be, and you're looking around as if you won't see this side of humanity for a while."

The boy looked shocked but slowly started to smile, "That's amazing," Sherlock blushed, "I'm going to Afghanistan in two weeks. My friends decided to take a quick trip to Disneyland with me as a goodbye. I asked them from some alone time and came to the Farris wheel."

Sherlock nodded.

"How did you do that, by the way? I mean, I know you just looked at me, but still, how did you narrow it down?" The future soldier asked.

"Easy. I have a special skill. Reading people."

"Brilliant." The boy whispered. Sherlock blushed again and looked out the window. He watched the water get farther away. "I'm sorry, I never got your name."

Sherlock looked into the boy's blue eyes. He would rather look at them than the water, "The name's Sherlock Holmes."

"I like it. I'm John Watson," John said. He held out his hand. Nervously, he brunet shook it.

Sherlock leaned back and stuttered, "Do you- Do you really think my deduction was brilliant?" John smiled and nodded. "Huh," Sherlock continued, "Most people just tell me to piss off."

John laughed. The whole cart seemed to get brighter at the sound. Sherlock let out a small chuckle of his own. They talked a bit more and realized they were both from London. Sherlock knew John was from the UK, but not London specifically. Sherlock slumped a little as he relaxed. "Hey," John started, "Do you want to go on the swinging carts after this? I kind of wanted to go on it first but there was a lot of people."

A smile grew on the younger teen's face. "Of course."

The two sat in silence and watched the pier as the wheel moved. John shifted awkwardly, "Um, so, do you have a girlfriend?"

Sherlock, obviously a little shocked by the question, looked back at him, "That, uh, not really my area," he whispered.

John's eyes widened a bit, "Ok, boyfriend then? Which is fine by the way." he quickly added.

The brunet chuckled again, "I know it's fine."

Suddenly, the ride stopped. They looked at the door as the worker opened the door. "Time to go, guys," They said. John got up first and asked the cast member a question. Sherlock couldn't hear, but the teen nodded, so it couldn't have been that bad, right? Sherlock and John moved out of the cart as another couple jumped in. It was obvious what they were going to try to do once the ride started.

The worker had them stand to the side as they brought a swinging cart over. "Hop on," They said with a wink. The third blush of the day crawled up Sherlock's face. John shuffled on and sat down. Sherlock joined him shyly. Once the door shut, John whispered something along the lines of an apology.

"What are you apologizing?" Sherlock asked.

John shuffled his hands, "Anyway, you didn't answer my question."

"You didn't answer mine."

"I asked you first."

Sherlock smiled, then the cart moved. He slammed his feet down to keep from sliding. John's back hit the wall. They laughed and looked out the window. "No boyfriend," Sherlock whispered. He gave John a cheeky look and was rewarded with John being flustered. "You turn," Sherlock continued.

John braced himself for the next swing, "I asked them if we could be alone together. I guess they took it wrong," He said, "Though, hopefully not, too wrong?" he asked softly.

Caught off guard by the hope in the soldier's voice, Sherlock wasn't prepared for the lurch forward. He didn't have time to stop himself from falling from his seat. He closed his eyes and prepared to hit the wall. When he opened his eyes, he realized that John had caught him. John's face was a foot away from his, his hands were on his hips, and Sherlock's hands were braced above John's head. Both teens turned incredibly red. The cart swung again, and John reflexively pulled him in to keep him from falling backwards. Sherlock looked at John again. This time, instead of Sherlock standing above John, he was now sitting on his lap.

John chuckled again, "I think you just fell for me. Twice."

Sherlock rolled his eyes, sending them both into laughing fits. The ride continued to move. The two boys held on as the cart attempted to move them across, laughing all the while. Slowly, the ride came to a stop, but the couple were still at the top. "I guess they're gonna take their time getting us down," Sherlock whispered. He placed his hands gently on John's shoulders.

"I guess so," John responded. Sherlock looked at him through his eyelashes. "So, how should we spend these last few minutes?" The blonde boy asked, his left pointer finger drawing soft circles into the hip of the boy on top of him.

Sherlock tilted his head, "I think I have an idea," he spoke as he leaned forward and brushed their noses together, "If you're amenable."

"Oh, god, yes," John responded quickly, moving forward to kiss the teen in his lap. The kiss wasn't intense, but it was something. Their lips brushed and pressed hesitantly, not wanting to push the other too far. John's lips were lightly sunburnt and tasted of cinnamon and sugar. Sherlock, on the other hand, had perfectly smooth and bowed lips that had the flavour of mint lemonade. Somehow, Sherlock shirt had become slightly untucked and John's hair had become ruffled. Somehow.

The pair broke apart as they heard the door squeak open and someone clears their throat. Sherlock pressed his forehead against John's then stood up. The worker winked at them as they walked out. They walked to the fence to overlook the water, ducks swimming across as they looked for food. They stood there for a long minute, watching the water ripple as Sherlock fixed shirt and John smoothed down his hair.

"You're a good kisser," John said into the comfortable silence between them.

"You as well," Sherlock chuckled and ran a hand through his hair. They looked at each other and shared a smile. "May I see your phone?"

John raised an eyebrow, "You're not gonna run off with it, are you? I thought we were just hitting it off!" Sherlock laughed again while John pulled out his phone. He unlocked it and passed to Sherlock, "I'm watching you."

"Good," Sherlock joked and opened the contacts. His thumbs ran across the screen as he added his number. John smiled more as Sherlock raised his phone to take a selfie for the contact photo. He opened up a new text conversation, "Now to get your number," Sherlock said then pulled John close to him, kissing his cheek and snapping a picture. When he pulled back, he looked at the photo. John was in the middle of laughing and had his eyes closed. Sherlock's nose was squished against John's right cheek as he placed a small kiss close to the corner of his smiling mouth.

Sherlock smirked and sent the photo to himself. He passed the phone back to John, "There you go, now you have my number. Just in case you know of anything else you think I should.. ride."

John's face turned incredibly red at the comment. "Uh, t-thanks," he stuttered. Sherlock nodded happily. "One last kiss for the road?" John questioned. Sherlock smiled and stepped closer, wrapping his arms around the shorter boy's neck, and placing a soft kiss on his lips. Hands settled on Sherlock's hips once again and pulled him slightly closer. The sounds of screaming teens disappeared around them. They pulled apart gently.

"It was very nice to meet you, John," Sherlock whispered. John shifted when he said his name. _He's so cute_. "I've got to go. Bye," He said, reluctantly slipping out from John's arms and playfully saluted him.

"Bye, Sherlock," Was the last thing Sherlock heard before he turned and walked toward his family. He pulled out his mobile and looked at the message. He smiled at the small picture of him kissing John.

Unknown Number: 1 Attachment

Sherlock almost walked into three different people as he added John to his favourites list. Now he knows why this is the 'Happiest Place On Earth.'

**Author's Note:**

> In case you were wondering:
> 
> This is [Sherlock's Shirt](https://www.shopdisney.com/jack-sparrow-tee-for-men-pirates-of-the-caribbean-dead-men-tell-no-tales-customizable-1430528?pagePath=%2Fsearch&pageType=SearchPage&algorithm=filter%3Atrue%2Csort%3AD-gross_margin&position=13%2C14)
> 
> And this is [John's Shirt](https://www.shopdisney.com/monsters-university-spirit-jersey-for-adults-1511849?pagePath=%2Fsearch&pageType=SearchPage&algorithm=filter%3Afalse%2Csort%3AD-gross_margin&position=2%2C39)


End file.
